Hollywood legend and Academy
Award winner James Coburn stars as Prof. Robert Elliot, a former secret agent
given the job opportunity of a lifetime: adviser to the President of the United
States. However, he has some skeletons in his closet that need eliminating,
namely the four people aware of his shady past. Elliot hatches a diabolical plot
to get rid of his targets in one night, with no ties leading back to him...but
will his plan work, or will an unexpected twist spoil everything? Also starring
Academy Award-winning actress Lee Grant (SHAMPOO) and written by Jonathan
Lynn (CLUE, MY COUSIN VINNY), THE INTERNECINE PROJECT is a
nerve-shattering thriller that will grip you in suspense until the unpredictable
surprise ending!.

****

An American professor of economics (Coburn)
gets offered a top level advisory job in Washington, on condition that he
eliminates four people in London who operate his European industrial espionage
network. Once under way, The Internecine Project turns into a straightforward,
very enjoyable if somewhat implausible murder story. Rather than despatch his
victims himself, Coburn sets them to kill each other by orchestrating their
motives and their moves. Despite the plot turning around a succession of calls
from conveniently empty public phone boxes (all in working order), and the
presence of a stereotype female journalist acting as Coburn's conscience, the
film gains in weight thanks to its topical implications. All in all, a neat and
unpretentious thriller that offers more food for thought than most such
unashamedly commercial movies.

Despite
being advertised as "Brand new master in HiDef from the original
InterPositive" - this progressive, dual-layered, anamorphic transfer
doesn't look especially strong. Noise seems more prevalent than the
clunky grain and colors are loose with a chroma effect being exhibited
and many speckles are evident. On the positive It is fairly consistent
and I'll assume it betters the existing 2005 Fremantkle UK edition (that
we don't have to compare). The softness is not particularly distracting
but I'll wager it looked quite crisper, and certainly cleaner,
theatrically - over 35 years ago.

The 2.0 channel audio supports the track
but is otherwise unremarkable.
No subtitles are offered.

There are some good extras
like the half-hour "Decoding the Project" an on camera interview
with writer Jonathan Lynn. There is also a ,less than 3-minutes, with
Lee Grant and an audio review with Lisa Coburn daughter of James Coburn.
There is an original trailer and previews of other Scorpion Releasing
titles.

This is a curious film that
seemed ahead of its time. Certainly it is memorable and a decent
thriller. Coburn is great as is Lee Grant.
It's been relatively hidden (less than 200 votes on IMDb) but deserves a
revisit. There is something under the surface that the narrative never
fully explores but has some 70's nostalgia going for it. Some may be
quite keen to see it just don't expect a lot from the A/V.